Does a repeat of the last presidential election take America into uncharted waters (an octogenarian incumbent vs. a predecessor on trial), or is it proof of Yogi Berra’s “déjà vu all over again” – as in 2016? Will a small sliver of independent voters decide the fates of a controversy-plagued Donald Trump and a Democratic opponent with his own set of problems? David Brady and Douglas Rivers, Hoover Institution senior fellows and Stanford University political scientists, discuss President Biden’s ...
Sep 07, 2023•41 min•Ep. 396
Chris Ford discusses the need for an insurance policy to mitigate vulnerabilities in American semiconductor supply chains through government incentives, private sector investment, workforce development, and strategic stockpiling.
Sep 07, 2023•40 min•Ep. 395
Can America re-create a vibrant domestic semiconductor industry and, if so, what does that portend for an already strategically-vulnerable Taiwan? Glenn Tiffert, a Hoover Institution distinguished research fellow and co-chair of Hoover’s Project on China’s Global Sharp Power , and Retired Admiral James Ellis, Hoover’s Annenberg Distinguished Visiting Fellow and a carrier battle group commander during 1996’s “Third Taiwan Strait Crisis”, discuss Silicon Triangle: The United States, Taiwan, China ...
Aug 31, 2023•52 min•Ep. 394
California’s first tropical storm in over eight decades exposes both physical and emotional frailties; the Golden State’s governor continues his shadow presidential campaign; and not a living Californian merits state “hall of fame” recognition. Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the latest in the Golden State, including a second...
Aug 25, 2023•51 min•Ep. 393
Noticeably absent from both the floors of Congress and the presidential campaign trail: innovative ideas for lowering healthcare costs, easing the system’s regulatory burdens, and offering patients greater freedom to design their own plans. Lanhee Chen, Hoover’s David and Diane Steffy Fellow in American Public Policy Studies, discusses Hoover’s Choices for All project to revamp America’s healthcare system and he reflects on various health-related entitlement challenges that will soon overwhelm s...
Aug 17, 2023•47 min•Ep. 392
With Hollywood at a standstill thanks to screenwriters and actors on strike, what to say about two summer blockbusters – Barbie and Oppenheimer – as California metaphors? Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the economics and politics of the Hollywood strike, California’s K-12 math and social-science curriculum changes under fire,...
Jul 25, 2023•59 min•Ep. 391
For a second straight summer, the Supreme Court issues a series of rulings that impact the nation’s social and political fabrics. John Yoo, a Hoover Institution visiting fellow and author of the newly released The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Supreme Court , explains the justices’ reasoning on race and free speech, what the future holds for college admissions (Harvard’s legacy factor now the subject of a lawsuit), plus the unusually personal nature of a few of the opinions....
Jul 05, 2023•59 min•Ep. 390
Florida’s governor comes to San Francisco and uses the city’s decay as fodder for a presidential campaign ad, while improvement and innovation in California’s K-12 schools remains elusive thanks to the state’s political dynamics. Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the latest in the Golden State, including the summer’s first heat...
Jun 30, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 389
A recent data study on America’s charter schools – the third in an ongoing series – shows students with average learning gains of six days in math and 16 days in reading for the academic years 2015-2019. Macke Raymond, a Hoover Institution Distinguished Research Fellow and founder and director of Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes , which authored the study, discusses lessons learned and the status of the three-decade charter school movement, the push for better perf...
Jun 28, 2023•51 min•Ep. 388
Arguably the world’s most troubled region, the Levant continues to produce geopolitical obstacles and conundrums. Joel Rayburn, a Hoover visiting fellow and former US State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary for Levant Affairs explains how Bashar al-Assad (the Levant’s “Tony Soprano”) survived a civil war and sanctions, the Arab League readmitting Syria, the significance of regional lands conducting their own diplomacy without direct US involvement, the role of a fragile regime in Iran, plus ...
Jun 23, 2023•49 min•Ep. 387
A cyberattack on a European banking institution, the handiwork of a pro-Russian “hacktivist” collective, may be a preview of the next chapter in the war in Ukraine. Herb Lin, the Hoover Institution’s Hank J. Holland Fellow in Cyber Policy and Security, discusses possible motives behind the attack, various nations’ cyber-strategies – China in search of data, North Korea in need of cash – and the push and pull between the US government and the nation’s commercial and tech sectors over taking respo...
Jun 21, 2023•37 min•Ep. 386
Forty years after the movie WarGames showed the threat of a computer-driven nuclear holocaust, war-gaming has come to prominence as a way to foreshadow – and possibly deter – future conflicts. Jacquelyn Schneider, a Hoover fellow and director of Hoover’s Wargaming and Crisis Simulation Initiative , explains the fine art of quality war-gaming – and how the practice applies to current tensions between the US and China, and perhaps played a role in the current Russia-Ukraine conflict....
Jun 13, 2023•43 min•Ep. 385
San Francisco’s office values plummet as the city/county face a myriad of financial woes including a gaping budget shortfall and a public-transportation system approaching a “fiscal cliff.” Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the latest in the Golden State, including what policies San Francisco could implement to rejuvenate its b...
Jun 02, 2023•46 min•Ep. 384
What are we to make of the debt-ceiling drama in Washington and why is there a need for the Federal Reserve to engage in greater self-examination? John Cochrane, the Hoover Institution’s Rose Marie and Jack Anderson senior fellow and a recipient of the 2023 Bradley Prize for his contributions to the study of economics, reflects on lessons learned from inflation, institutional drift, and the art of economic storytelling.
May 19, 2023•46 min•Ep. 383
San Francisco’s fentanyl “crackdown” begins; California’s budget drama heats up inside the State Capitol; and Governor Gavin Newsom’s ongoing obsession with national politics prompts a media backlash back at home. Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the latest in the Golden State, including what policy urgencies Newsom faces other...
May 05, 2023•43 min•Ep. 382
At the dawn of the 20th Century, control of the African continent centered around European colonial desires – national pride, natural resources, and manpower. Hoover senior fellow emeritus Thomas Henriksen, author of America’s Wars: Interventions, Regime Change, and Insurgencies After the Cold War , describes what differs in this century other than the former colonies being independent nations—Russian and Chinese influence (think war financing and debt traps), terrorist-related “forever wars,” a...
Apr 28, 2023•42 min•Ep. 381
One economist believes that what is lacking in America today is too little in the way of intellectual curiosity. Kevin Hassett, a Hoover Institution distinguished visiting fellow and past chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisors (and a man very curious about the motives behind JFK’s assassination as well as a recent book about the assassination, The Oswalds: An Untold Account of Marina and Lee by Hoover colleague Paul Gregory), ponders why some topics – climate change and CO2 emissi...
Apr 21, 2023•58 min•Ep. 380
Should he formalize his candidacy, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott would be the fifth Republican looking to unseat President Biden in 2024. How many other Republicans will join the field – and what are their odds of denying Donald Trump the GOP nomination? Ben Ginsberg, the Hoover Institution’s Volker Family Visiting Fellow and a nationally recognized political law advocate and veteran of past Republican presidential efforts, discusses the current state of the GOP “establishment,” Trump’s loyal...
Apr 14, 2023•57 min•Ep. 379
A lurid homicide in an upscale neighborhood underscores San Francisco’s various crises. Meanwhile, California governor Gavin Newsom tours America’s red states – begging the question of his interest in his day job. Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the latest in the Golden State, including why Newsom’s promise to build millions ...
Apr 07, 2023•59 min•Ep. 378
Amidst his country’s turmoil over pension reform, French president Emmanuel Macron courts Chinese president Xi Jinping, while Israel and the US are at odds over the Israel’s proposed judicial reform. Hoover senior fellow and former State Department senior advisor Russell Berman discusses the latest in Europe and the Middle East, including NATO’s commitment to arming Ukraine, Iran’s regional ambitions, and the Saudi government warming up to Chinese diplomacy – and currency – while cutting back on...
Apr 05, 2023•42 min•Ep. 377
Donald Trump’s legal woes aren’t the only unknowns as the 2024 election cycle begins. There’s a question of the identity of today’s GOP; a Democratic void should President Biden surprisingly not run; plus the wild card of a domestic crisis (an economic recession) and a foreign crisis (Ukraine). Hoover senior fellows Dave Brady and Doug Rivers, both Hoover senior fellows and Stanford political scientists, whose polling tracks the health of the two parties’, reflect on the state of the next presid...
Mar 28, 2023•51 min•Ep. 376
Why has California governor Gavin Newsom taken to denouncing Walgreens’ drug policy (hint: abortion-pill availability) and what should happen with the Golden State’s problematic high-speed rail project that’s more “loco” than “motion”? Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, discuss the latest in the Golden State including why Newsom chose not to deliver a State of the State address, fent...
Mar 10, 2023•47 min•Ep. 375
A Chicago mayoral primary fueled by the issue of crime ends up with the incumbent’s ouster and an April runoff between two Democrats with opposing views on education – one espousing school choice, and the other backed by a powerful teachers’ union. Michael Hartney, a Hoover Institution fellow and author of How Policies Make Interest Groups: Governments, Unions, and American Education , discusses the oversized influence of teachers unions in policy-making, elections, and interest-group politics....
Mar 03, 2023•53 min•Ep. 374
As Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine passes its one-year milestone, what are the prospects of hostilities spreading across the European continent? Tomasz Blusiewicz, a Hoover Institution research fellow and a historian of modern Europe and Russia, reflects on the war’s legacy tapping into his roots as a Polish native, a Russian university professor, and a scholar and observer of the Baltic states’ as they emerged from their Cold War existence.
Feb 24, 2023•56 min•Ep. 373
The 2023 Supreme Court docket includes weighing the constitutionality of President Biden’s student loan debt-forgiveness plan, state legislatures’ roles in redistricting, and whether California can export woke business practices across state lines. Michael McConnell, a Hoover Institution senior fellow and Stanford Law School professor, explains why he took part in an amicus brief in the matter of loan forgiveness and what to expect from the conservative-majority court....
Feb 16, 2023•56 min•Ep. 372
A look back at wartime moral dilemmas confronting America’s “greatest generation” – dropping atomic bombs, interning Japanese-Americans, whether to starve Axis populations – all raise questions concerning how present-day leaders will confront crises. Zachary Shore, a Hoover Institution national security fellow and Naval Postgraduate School professor, discusses lessons learned from World War II and the fine art of understanding enemies especially when dealing with the likes of Vladimir Putin and ...
Feb 10, 2023•43 min•Ep. 371
Can California governor Gavin Newsom play a role in the congressional debate over an assault weapons ban and what is the feasibility of reparations for San Francisco’s black community? Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the latest in the Golden State, including NBA great Stephen Curry’s failed attempt to block a proposed housing...
Feb 03, 2023•49 min•Ep. 370
The aftermath of California’s devastating winter storms begs the questions: can state government clean up efficiently and effectively; and will lawmakers in Sacramento develop housing and regulatory policies to minimize the effects of future disasters? Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss lessons learned from the winter storms, wh...
Jan 21, 2023•55 min•Ep. 369
Why did California governor Gavin Newsom slip across the US-Mexico border and how can anyone explain the Golden State’s exorbitant gasoline prices? Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the politics of California-style “pain at the pump;” why Newsom’s newfound interest in America’s immigration crisis plays into his national aspirat...
Dec 16, 2022•55 min•Ep. 368
What’s the story behind the student-workers’ strike at UC campuses across California, and what changes in homeless policy will a pair of mayors-elect bring to Los Angeles and San Jose? Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “ California on Your Mind ” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the latest in the Golden State, including the feasibility of a state windfall tax on oil companies’ profits cu...
Dec 02, 2022•58 min•Ep. 367
